Inhaler



E- s INVENTOR. au/s A Geese-e BY @www liornfy L. P. GERBER INHALER Filed sept. 1o, 1951 March 29, 1955 United States Patent O INHALER Louis P. Gerber, Inglewood, Calif.

Application September 10, 1951, Serial No. 245,840

7 Claims. (Cl. 128-200) This invention relates to inhalers for the administration of volatile analgesic or anaesthetic agents or materials by inhalation to afford relief from pain originating from a wide variety of causes.

An important object is to provide a simple device of light weight, small size and compact arrangement consisting of a barrel having a chamber closed at its bottom as by means of an adjustable closure formed with a pointed inner portion adapted to engage and break the bottom of an ampule containing a suitable inhalant contained within the chamber to release the inhalant so as to be readily absorbed by a saturable mass of material, a nose piece at the top of said barrel having a passage into which the saturable material extends and through which the vapors from the inhalant are emitted upon inspiration of a user, and a cap removably held on an end of'y the barrel for enclosing the nose piece and for closing one or more air ports against loss of analgesic vapors to the outside air and against entrance of air from the atmosphere when the cap is closed but permitting movement of air to said chamber in response to inspiratory action of the user when the cap is removed.

Another object is to mount coaxially all of the cornposite elements of the inhaler for ready assembly and disassembly and to provide a unit of minimum practical len th.

l further object is to so form and arrange the saturable element in the barrel so as to protect the fragile glass ampule against breakage of its annular wall prior to intentional release of the inhalant from the ampule and to subdivide the interior of the barrel into a liquid chamber and a vapor chamber so that during inhalation, air from the atmosphere will be drawn into the vapor chamber for mixture with and dilution of the inhalant to a desirable extent and to prevent glass fragments from entering the nose piece.

Other and more detailed objects of my invention may appear as the description progresses.

I have shown a preferred form of inhaler embodying my invention in the accompanying drawing, subject, however, to modification, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention. In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is an exploded view;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view on line 2--2 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a top end View with the cap removed, and

Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively transverse sectional views on lines 4 4 and 5 5, of Fig. 2 with absorbent pad removed.

Briey described my inhaler includes a barrel A having an integral end 1 threaded at 2 to receive a correspondingly threaded skirt 3 of a cap B; a closure C having external threads 4 adapted to be screwed into barrel A onto internal threads 5. An ampule D of frangible material s adapted to be supported in barrel A between nose piece 7 and closure C and the body of the ampule is surrounded by a saturable annular pad E formed of convolute gauze, absorbent cotton batting or other suitable absorbent material otherwise formed. Ampule D is enclosed in a saturable sock S of fabric which is adapted to retain fragments of the ampule D when it is broken. Sock S also serves as a wick for the passage of liquid from pad E to absorbent element F.

End 1 of the barrel is formed with one or more air breathing orices 6, 6 and a hood-like nose piece or appli- 80 cator 7 inwardly of said orifices and provided with a pas- "ice sage 8 and an outlet 9. Ampule D is frictionally held in the barrel by the absorbent pad E and a second absorbent element F having a compressed mass 10 surrounding the upper portion of the ampule body and an upwardly extended portion 11 surrounding the head or neck of the ampule and extended into passage 8 of the nose piece 7.

Thus, between closure C and pad E there is a chainber 12 formed for receiving liquid inhalant from the ampule when the bottom of the ampule is fractured as hereinafter described. Between mass 10 of element F and end 1 of barrel A a vapor chamber 13 is formed which is separated into a plurality of segments by radial ribs 15. Obviously, liquid inhalant from chamber 12 saturates pad E, a sock S covering the .ampule D and mass 10 and the vapors are emitted from and through mass 10 into chamber 13 where they collect and remain in readiness for mixture with air through orifices 6 when cap B is removed. Of course, as a user inhales through nose piece 7 a flow of air is induced through orifices 6 and a vapor-air mixture, either resident in chamber 13 or passage 8, or induced through element F is drawn into the respiratory system of the user from outlet 9.

The bottom d of ampule D is readily broken by turning closure C so as to correspondingly screw the closure into the barrel A to an extent which will force the pointed breaker 14 against and will fracture bottom d of the ampule and completely release the liquid inhalant into chamber 12 when held vertically with applicator end uppermost. Complete absorption of the inhalant is accomplished by rotating the inhaler about its longitudinal axis for ten to fifteen seconds, upon which the inhaler will be in readiness for use.

The portion 11 of absorbent element F is usually of pyramidal form as shown and is held in alinement with passage 8 as by means of a plurality of inwardly extended radial ribs 15, 15 from the wall of barrel A.

The ribs 15 limit the inward thrust of the ampule D when the breaker 14 is screwed inwardly into barrel A for breaking the bottom of the ampule and, additionally, prevents reduction of the area of vapor chamber 13 by an excess thrust of the ampule inwardly by reason of its engagement with breaker 14. Also, said ribs prevent occlusion of orifices 6 through contact of mass 10 with inner surface of end 1. Hence, chamber 13 is always of sufficient size and capacity to hold a requisite volume of vapor for use.

If desirable the joint between barrel A and flange 16 of closure C may be covered as by means of one or more convolutions of adhesive tape to prevent inadvertent removal of closure C, or leakage of liquid from chamber 12 arising from careless workmanship or negligence of a user.

It will be apparent that by removing closure C from the barrel A, the ampule D, pad E and element F may be readily inserted or removed at will, and by inverting the inhaler any liquid in chamber 12 may be retained until said closure is replaced on the barrel. Furthermore, when the contents of an ampule have been exhausted, said ampule may be removed quickly, conveniently, and without scattering of glass fragments by pulling on the end of its sock S. Pad E and element F remain undisturbed and may be used repeatedly by the insertion of a succession of charged ampules, with each ampule encased in a suitable sock, or by reuse of the socks.

I claim:

1. An inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprising: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed first closure at one end and a removable second closure at its other end, said first closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said second closure, an annular absorbent pad directly confined between said ampule and the wall of said barrel and cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid receiving chamber adjacent said first closure, said pad when saturated with an inhalant from said chamber adapted to direct vapors toward and for discharge through said nose piece during inhalations of a user.

2. An inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprising: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed rst closure at one end and a removable second closure at its other end, said first closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said second closure, an annular absorbent pad directly confined between said ampule and the wall of said barrel and cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid receiving chamber adjacent said rst closure, said pad when saturated with an inhalant from said chamber adapted to direct vapors toward and for discharge through said nose piece during inhalations of a user, said removable closure formed with a pointed breaker adapted to fracture the adjacent end of the ampule when the removable closure is screwed into the barrel to an extent to forcibly engage said breaker with the end of the ampule, so as to release the liquid contents of the ampule into said liquid chamber.

3. An inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprising: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed first closure at one end and a removable second closure at its other end, said first closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said second closure, an annular absorbent pad directly confined between said ampule and the wall of said barrel and cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid receiving chamber adjacent said first closure, said pad when saturated with an inhalant from said chamber adapted to direct vapors toward and for discharge through said nose piece during inhalations of a user, said remov able closure formed with a pointed breaker adapted to fracture the bottom of the ampule when the removable closure is screwed into the barrel to an extent to forcibly engage said breaker with the end of the ampule, so as to release the liquid contents of the ampule into said liquid chamber, and a permeable element between said vapor chamber and said nose piece through which vapors are drawn for use.

4. An inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprising: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed first closure at one end and a removable second closure at its other end, said first closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said second closure, an annular absorbent pad directly confined between said ampule and the wall of said barrel and cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid receiving chamber adjacent said first closure, said pad when saturated with an inhalant from said chamber adapted to direct vapors toward and for discharge through said nose piece during inhalations of a user, said removable closure formed with a pointed breaker adapted to fracture the adjacent end of the ampule when the removable closure is screwed into the barrel to an extent to forcibly engage said breaker with the end of the ampule, so as to release the liquid contents of the ampule into said liquid chamber, and a permeable element between said vapor chamber and said nose piece through which vapors are drawn for use, said permeable element being formed around the sealed end of the ampule and defining one side of the vapor chamber.

5. An inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprising: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed first closure at one end and a removable second closure at its other end, said first closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said second closure, an annular ab sorbent pad directly confined between said ampule and the wall of said barrel and cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid receiving chamber adjacent said first closure, said pad when saturated with an inhalant from said chamber adapted to direct vapors toward and for discharge through said nose p1ece during inhalations of a user, and a cap removably attachable to said barrel for enclosing said nose piece and for closing said air inlet when the inhaler is not 1n use.

6. In an inhaler: a cylindrical barrel, an air inlet and a nose piece at one end of the barrel, a closure adjustable on the other end of the barrel, an inhalant charged frangible ampule in said barrel, an annular absorbent pad 1n said barrel cushionably engaging said ampule, said ampule and said pad defining a liquid chamber below and a vapor chamber above said ampule, a permeable element at the inner end of said nose piece surrounding a part of and for axially alining the ampule with the barrel, and a cap removably held on said barrel for enclosing the nose piece and for closing said air inlet when the lnhaler is not in use and exposing the nose piece and opening the air inlet to said vapor chamber for use.

7. inhaler for analgesic and anaesthetic inhalants comprlsing: a cylindrical barrel having a fixed closure at one end and an adjustable and removable closure at lts other end, said fixed closure having an air inlet and a tubular nose piece with an outlet, an inhalant-charged frangible ampule coaxially held in said barrel with its bottom adjacent said removable closure, said ampule and lts supporting means defining a liquid receiving chamber between the ampule and the removable closure and a vapor chamber adjacent said fixed closure, an absorbent fabric sock enclosing said ampule for retaining fragments of a broken ampule and for conducting the liquid inhalant upwardly into said nose piece, said ampule supporting means including an annular absorbent pad between said chambers and encompassing said ampule whereby when saturated with an inhalant liquid from said liquid chamber inhalant will be conducted through said pad into said vapor chamber and thence outwardly through and from said nose piece during inhalations of a user.

References Cited in the le of this patent 

